This invention relates to furniture and more particularly to folding or collapsible wardrobes and cabinets. Even more specifically, the present invention relates to a sheet metal folding wardrobe having integral hinges formed in the sheet metal composition of the wardrobe or cabinet wherein the hinges are joined by single continuous steel hinge pins.
Folding wardrobes are well known in the art. Typically, these units are made of wooden or plastic composition.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,342,269 illustrates a typical collapsible unit having a front panel with a door opening, a closed back wall, two side panels, a top and a bottom defining an inner wardrobe space. The various walls are hinged together using standard separate, applied hinge members affixed to the walls.
International Publication Number WO 01/37705 A1 discloses a free-standing plastic foldable storage unit. The unit has panels connected by living hinges attached to the panels by hot melt adhesives. In one embodiment disclosed in WO 01/37705 A1, a back wall is formed from a one piece extrusion, preferably made from PVC or polypropylene, and has an adjoining living hinge integrally formed therein along its vertical midline dividing the back into two panels. The living hinge is a thinned linear portion of the plastic material (PVC) formed during the extrusion process. The living hinge is a weakened seam dividing the back wall that allows the wall to fold along this weakened seam or hinge. In a further embodiment, a series of separate integrally molded C-shaped channels and pins make up hinges connecting the back panels to one another. The plastic C-shaped channels are not closed and the assembled hinges are spaced apart. There are a multiplicity of separate hinge pins used.
The present invention is a foldable wardrobe constructed from sheet metal to provide fire resistance and increase inner space security. The hinge sections are continuous and integrally formed by bending or pressing tabs into generally closed loops at the end of offset stiffener sections in the tabs. A single, continuous, steel hinge pin extends through the entire hinge to again increase the security of the unit.